


Closing the Last Crack

by sinjinh1



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Torchwood
Genre: Children of Earth Fix-It, F/M, Gwen Bashing, M/M, Mpreg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-27
Updated: 2014-08-05
Packaged: 2018-02-10 16:10:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2031447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinjinh1/pseuds/sinjinh1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Eleventh Doctor realizes the biggest crack of them all is still open.  Cardiff beckons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The Doctor thought he had closed all of the cracks in time and space then he remembered something. Just before he regenerated this last time, he found Captain Jack Harkness sitting alone in a bar getting drunk. He sent his friend that stupid not telling jack Midshipman Alonso Frame’s name and walked away. “Why would I do that?” he asked himself now.

Amy and Rory were in their room. They had just finished helping the Queen with a minor crisis. He had some time to himself as he had the TARDIS go through Jack’s history. When he got to 2009 and the attack on Earth’s children by the 456, he stopped. “That shouldn’t have happened,” he said as his brow furrowed. “They were destroyed well before the Time War. The Time Lords and the Shadow Proclamation had them eradicated when they learned what the children were used for.”

He saw the footage from Thames House and sighed. “I’m such an idiot. That last regeneration could be rude and tactless but that was cold, even for me. There has to be another crack rewriting history.”

“What?” he heard Amy asked as he turned to see the newlyweds.

“I just discovered that we have one more crack to close,” The Doctor said as he spun back around to the controls and saw where the crack was located. We’re going to Cardiff.”  
“Cardiff?” Rory asked as he and Amy approached the console.

“Yes, Cardiff. There’s a rift in time and space there. I thought it was an ordinary rift but it is the biggest of the cracks that took Amy’s parents.”

“How do we close it?” Amy asked as she squeezed Rory’s hand a little. They both now remembered what happened with the Pandoricom.

“Quite simple really,” The Doctor grinned.

“Why don’t I believe that?”

He just glared at her as he maneuvered the TARDIS. “Here we are. Cardiff. Not long after I dropped off Jack.”

They stepped out of the TARDIS onto a roof. They saw an SUV stop as the rift opened. He saw Gwen Copper drag a man toward the rift. He had known when he saw her on the TARDIS monitor with Rose that she was a descendant of poor Gwyneth’s family. He also knew she was the one who had to seal the rift, just has her ancestor had done. He ran over to the others.

“You have to go, Gwen,” he said as they all looked at him.

“Who are you?” Tosh asked.

“I’m The Doctor,” he grinned as a convertible pulled up and Jack jumped out of the driver’s seat. “Jack stop!”

Jack stopped short when he looked over and saw this stranger then he saw the TARDIS. “Doctor? But I just left you,”

“Wibbly Wobbly. Jack, Gwen has to go into the rift and she has to take the man with the bomb on his chest with her.”

“She’ll die!” 

“I know, and I’m sorry but it’s the only way to save the planet not to mention Ianto and your grandson.”

Jack just stood there.

“Ten seconds!” shouted Ianto.

Jack looked from The Doctor to Ianto to Gwen. “I’m sorry Gwen. You have to go.”

“But Jack, I love you!” she shouted.

“You should be in love with Rhys,” he said softly as he went up to her and John. He put his hands on their chests, looked at John and said, “I’m sorry,” and gave them a soft shove.  
Gwen shouted his name as she fell into the rift and the bomb went off. The rift sealed and day turned into night.

“What just happened?” Owen asked.

“The rift sealed itself,” The Doctor said as Amy and Rory joined him.

“And time has reversed to just after John came through,” Jack sighed. “We have to avoid ourselves until tomorrow.”

“But we could save Gwen,” Tosh argued. “If time has reversed, we can keep ourselves from falling for John’s ploy and…”

“We can’t Tosh,” Ianto said as he slipped his stopwatch into his pocket. “It will cause a paradox.”

“What about Rhys?” Owen asked.

“I don’t know,” Jack said. “Owen, take the car and find us a hotel to stay in for the night, the fancier the better. We could us some pampering right now. Tosh go with him. Ianto, we need to hide the SUV then we need to talk to the Doctor.”

He turned to the Time Lord. “You need to move the TARDIS. Send one of them to tell me where you are. I know there are things you can’t tell me but you better have a damn good explanation for why I just pushed one of my people to her death and how you know about my grandson.”

He looked at his team. “We better move. The others will be here soon.”

Owen just nodded as he and Tosh went to the convertible while Ianto followed Jack to the SUV. Once they were driving Ianto spoke. “Are you going to go with him?”

“No,” Jack said quickly. He reached over and took the younger man’s hand. “I told you I came back for you. I meant that.”

“A second later you said you came back for all of us.”

Jack sighed. “Yes I did. I was gone for a long time, Ianto, a year. I need to tell you some of it so I can come to terms with it. But know this and never doubt it, you were my focus during that time. Finding my way back to you was the only thing that kept me sane.”

Ianto nodded. “Will you tell me about your grandson?”

Jack nodded and they lapsed into silence. They found a place to hide the SUV then met up with Tosh and Owen at the hotel. Owen had gotten them the best suite in the hotel. He and Tosh sat on the couch in the sitting area and watched as Jack practically collapsed into an arm chair as Ianto hung up the great coat before finding a seat for himself.  
“So that was The Doctor?” Owen asked. “The one you took off with?”

“Not exactly,” Jack sighed.

“What does that mean?”

“This is a new regeneration. I don’t know how long its been for him since he left me.”

Ianto got up to answer the knock on the door. Rory was standing there. “The Doctor is on the roof. He wasn’t sure if Jack would want everyone to hear what he has to say.”

“Tell him to come down,” Jack said from his chair. “They deserve an explanation too.”

“I need a drink,” Owen said as he got up and limped to the bar. He poured himself a drink, looked at Tosh, poured her one and returned to the couch.


	2. Chapter 2

They were silent until The Doctor arrived with Amy and Rory. After everyone was seated The Doctor began. “I can’t tell you everything.”

“Just tell us why we had to kill Gwen,” Owen interrupted.

“Yes, well, it all started with a crack in Amy’s bedroom wall,” The Doctor said as he told them about sealing the cracks. He didn’t tell them how or when he regenerated nor did he tell them about River Song.

“I thought that all the cracks were sealed then I realized I had forgotten about the biggest crack of all. The one running right through Cardiff. Then I remembered Ms. Cooper. Rose and I met one of her ancestors on Christmas Eve in 1879. With Charles Dickens, I might add.”

Not getting the impressed looks he was hoping for, The Doctor continued. “I realized that Ms. Cooper had to be the one to seal the rift. Her ancestor had been the key in 1879.”

“But wouldn’t the bomb have been sufficient?” Tosh asked.

“Unfortunatly, no. Because of the type of bomb it was it would have closed the rift if you had managed to remove it from that man’s chest, but…”

“John,” Jack said as he glared at The Doctor. “His name was Captain John Hart. He worked with me at the Time Agency. He could have helped me recover my missing memories.”

“I’m sorry Jack, but you know in your heart that he wouldn’t have helped you,” Ianto said as he went over and put a hand on Jack’s shoulder.

Jack sat there for a minute before he nodded and indicated for The Doctor to continue.

“Ms. Cooper’s connection to the rift was strong,” The Doctor continued. “She would have been drawn to it.”

“She did seem determined to find out more about us when she first saw us at that crime scene,” Tosh observed. “She even managed to break through the retcon.”

“What did she do before she started working for Torchwood?”

“She was a police constable,” Jack said. “She said she spent her whole life in Cardiff.”

“The rift was keeping her here,” The Doctor sighed. “I wish I had pieced all of this together before. I’m sorry Jack. Gwen Cooper should have never joined Torchwood because she should have never existed. Its almost as if the rift created her to recreate the conduit it had found in her ancestor all those years ago.”

“So what happens now?” Amy asked. “You said the rift is sealed. Did you just put all of them out of work?”

“Quite the contrary,” The Doctor grinned. “There is still a need for Torchwood. There are still alien threats that will need to be dealt with. And with Jack in charge, Torchwood will be the first line of defense.”

They were all silent for a moment then Jack looked at Tosh and Owen. “Get some sleep. We can decide how to deal with Rhys in the morning.”

They just nodded and left Jack and Ianto with The Doctor, Rory and Amy. “Who’s Rhys?” Rory asked.

“Gwen’s fiancé,” Ianto said as Jack closed his eyes for a moment. “Doctor, you told Jack that sealing the rift would save my life and the life of his grandson. I think he deserves to know what you meant by that.”

“Yes, of course,” The Doctor said. He looked at his companions. “Pond, this is rather personal. Take the husband back to the TARDIS and pretend its your wedding night again.”

Amy grabbed Rory’s hand and they headed out of the suite. The Doctor waited until he was sure they were alone before he continued. “Jack, did you deal with an alien race in 1964 that wanted a group of children in exchange for a vaccine?”

“Yes, no, wait, I’m not sure,” Jack said as a confused look crossed his face.

“That is what convinced me the rift was the last of the cracks. The creatures you encountered in 1964 were eliminated before the Time War. They harvested children in exchange for some cure for some disease they probably helped spread in the first place. They would keep coming and demand more children on each visit until finally the population they were harvesting from was extinct.”

“What happened to the children?” Ianto asked.

“They were used as narcotics,” The Doctor said with venom in his voice. “It couldn’t be tolerated. I think the destruction of civilizations is what convinced the Shadow Proclamation to intervene. Anyway, if the rift hadn’t been closed, these creatures would have escaped their punishment. They would have come for the first harvest of children in 1964 and they would return in the not too distant future.”

“And they would kill Ianto and Stephen?” Jack asked.

The Doctor nodded then he leaned forward. “Jack, I am sorry about Ms. Cooper. And about Captain Hart. I looked for a time or an event that would seal the rift that last crack. The TARDIS led me to this time and that event.”

Jack just nodded and Ianto put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s late. Who knows when the last time you had a proper night’s sleep was. We should go to bed.”

“Mr. Jones is right,” The Doctor said as he stood. “I will be in the TARDIS if you need me.”

“Doctor,” Jack said as the Time Lord started out of the room. “What happens if I see your previous regeneration again? Should I retcon my team?”

“No,” The Doctor said softly. “I trust you and your team. If and when you encounter my previous self you won’t let anything slip. Now get some sleep.”

Jack nodded as The Doctor left the suite. He looked up at Ianto. “Stephen is my grandson. His mother is my daughter. She goes by Alice Carter but her birth name is Melissa Moretti.”

“Luica Moretti is her mother then?” Ianto asked. Jack nodded and he continued. “That explains her deep undercover mission.”

He went to make sure the door was secure as Jack got up. “That’s it? No more questions?”

Ianto turned and looked at him. “Not about them. Jack, you’ve been around a long time. There were lovers before me and there will be lovers after I’m gone. It doesn’t surprise me that you have a daughter and a grandson.”

“You’re right,” Jack said as he walked over to Ianto and took his hand. “There were lovers before you, but there won’t be lovers after you’re gone. You are it for me. That year I was gone was the worst year of my life. It is a long story and I really don’t want to get into everything tonight. I will tell you this. I watched you die. I watched you die, Ianto, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. I was so lost after that. I knew that if the Doctor succeeded though, time would reverse itself. And I knew if it did you would be alive. That’s what kept me from going insane. The idea of you living and breathing again gave me purpose. When the Doctor said that sealing the rift would save your life, I knew what I had to do.”

“You didn’t even hesitate,” Ianto said as he wiped a tear from Jack’s face. “Why?”

“I love you Ianto,” Jack cried. “I love you more than I’ve loved anyone in my life.”

Ianto looked stunned. Jack copped Ianto’s cheek. “I told you I came back for you. I meant that. I wouldn’t have come back if I had been with Lucia or Estelle if I found The Doctor while we were together.”

“You wouldn’t have come back for your daughter and grandson?”

Jack sighed. “Lucia wouldn’t let me near Alice, especially after she found out I was immortal. Alice hasn’t told Stephen I’m his grandfather. He calls me Uncle Jack when he sees me. No, I probably wouldn’t have come straight back for them.”

Ianto just nodded and Jack kissed him. Then he yawned. Ianto laughed. “See, I bore you already. You need sleep, Jack.”

Jack nodded and reached out his hand for Ianto’s. “Join me. Just to sleep. You’re right. I haven’t had a proper night’s sleep in a long time. And I’m afraid if we tried to do anything else I’d fall asleep before we got to the good parts and where’s the fun in that?”

Ianto smiled as he took Jack’s hand and they went into one of the remaining bedrooms. Jack was practically asleep before his head hit the pillow.

The next morning, Amy, Rory and The Doctor joined the team for breakfast in the suite. It was decided they would tell Rhys part of the truth. They would tell him that Gwen had been killed by a criminal they were trying to apprehend. Jack rationalized it by saying that John was probably wanted for something in the future and ultimately it was his fault that Gwen was dead.

They knew they needed to recruit a new member of the team. Jack thought it would be a good idea to have a police liason. He asked the others what they thought of the idea of recruiting Andy. Tosh accessed his personel file from the Cardiff police force and found that Andy had a natural curiosity that was tempered with a respect for authority. They decided they would approach him and revel what Torchwood really did. If he could handle that and the news of the way Gwen had really died, he had the job.

The Doctor left with Amy and Rory and life returned to some level of normal for Torchwood. Andy proved to be a valuable asset for the team. Jack found it refreshing to have someone in the police liason position who didn’t consistently question his orders or his motives.


	3. Chapter 3

Rhys had been off their radar for quite some time until they started investigating a shipment of mystery meat and found out that one of Rhys’ drivers had been involved. Rhys had already made contact with the smugglars so Jack decided to bring him in for this one mission then retcon him.

Jack looked at Rhys as they sat in the cab of the truck. “How have you been Rhys?”

Rhys laughed a little. “Like you care. You couldn’t even tell me the truth about how my fiancée died.”

“Would you have believed me if I had?”

Rhys sighed. “Probably not. I think deep down I knew what Gwen was really doing when she joined you lot. I just didn’t want to believe it.”

“Neither does most of Cardiff,” Jack said as he laughed a little. “Believe me when I say if there had been some way to save Gwen, I would have. I know how much you loved her and I know what its like to lose the person you’re in love with.”

“How could you?” Rhys asked bitterly. “You’ve still got Ianto.”

Jack sighed. “I’m a time traveler, Rhys. Right before Gwen died something happened and I lived through Ianto’s death. I wasn’t sure I wanted to though.”

Rhys just nodded. They were quiet for a long time before Rhys spoke again, “I know she was in love with you.”

Jack closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. I told her not to let your relationship drift. I wish she’d never met me.”

“Gwen wasn’t perfect. I know that. I just needed to get things off my mind.”

Jack nodded. He put his mind back on the mission. He knew the space whale had to have come through the rift before The Doctor closed it. He knew they wouldn’t be able to send it back through the rift but perhaps they could take care of it until he could get The Doctor to take it somewhere.

Of course that was before everything blew up in their faces. Ianto and Rhys had their cover blown and the whale had been severely injured in the crossfire. The only thing Owen could do was put the poor thing out of its misery.

Again the team had to decide what to do about Rhys. Even though his cover had been blown, Rhys had proven to be an asset in the field. Jack decided he would offer Rhys a place on the team on a trial basis. Rhys could assist Ianto in the Hub and he could help with transport when needed.


	4. Chapter 4

Time passed and the team got into a groove. Ianto and Jack ran the team together. They brought Martha onto the team as backup for Owen and to keep UNIT away from her. Jack made sure that Project Indigo never got off of the ground. When the planets moved and the Daleks invaded, they teamed up with Sarah Jane Smith and Harriet Jones to contact the Doctor. Jack, Ianto, Tosh and Owen knew it might not be the one they encountered when Gwen and John died and they kept their mouths shut. They were right. It was his previous incarnation.

Jack put his hand on Ianto’s shoulder to keep him from telling off this Doctor. They had talked and Ianto understood that the 10th incarnation of the Doctor was a good man. He just had some problems with tact. He wasn’t surprised when Martha and Jack left to help him defeat the Daleks. After they left, Ianto asked Tosh if she had finished the lockdown program. She said she had just as a Dalek broke through their defenses and made it to the cog door. She locked down the hub and they sat down to wait for Jack and Martha.

When the Doctor contacted them to get them to help him move the planets back, they used the left over energy stored up in the rift manipulator to send to him. They knew they couldn’t tell him the rift was closed. When Jack came back to the Hub he saw the destroyed Dalek in the doorway. “Ianto!” he called.

“I’m here,” he said as he went over to his lover. 

Jack pulled Ianto close. “I saw that thing and…”

“I know,” Ianto said as he kissed Jack. “I’m fine. Tosh locked us down in a temporary time lock. You should give her a raise.”

“Where is everyone?” 

“I sent them home. Just so you know, Andy and Rhys went home together.”

“Really?” Jack said as he raised an eyebrow. He looked back over at the destroyed Dalek. “Come on. Let’s go home. We can clean up that rubbish tomorrow.”

Mickey came to Jack a few days later and asked if he could join Torchwood. Jack said they could find a place for him. There were now eight members of Torchwood. They were able to schedule a rota for the weekends, allowing two members a weekend off at the same time. Jack was mindful of the fact that there were now three couples within Torchwood and scheduled the weekends off accordingly.

Martha brought her fiancé Tom to Cardiff and he started working at the hospital. Her sister, Tish started working in a firm in Cardiff. She and Mickey started seeing each other.   
It had been a year since the Doctor, Amy and Rory had come and sealed the Rift. Ianto was surprised when he came back to the Hub and saw the Doctor sitting on a bench looking out on the water with a woman in a black dress sitting next to him. He touched his comm unit. “Jack, the Doctor is up here.”

“Which one?”

“The one who closed the Rift.”

“What’s he doing?”

“Sitting there looking at the water. There’s a woman sitting with him.”

“Amy?”

“No, I’ve never seen her before.”

“I’m on my way.”

When Jack came out of the Hub he found Ianto watching the Doctor and the mystery woman. “Has he said anything?”

“No, it looks like she’s doing all the talking,” Ianto said as they walked over to them. “You don’t think she’s dangerous do you?”

“I don’t know,” Jack said as they walked in front of the bench. “Doctor?”

“Oh, good, you’re finally here,” the woman said as she stood up. “I have to go check on my grandfather. My brother should have arrived at his door by now.”

“Wait, who are you?” Jack said as she smiled at him.

“I’m River Song. I’m Amy and Rory’s daughter. And, on occasion, I’m his wife.”

She indicated the Doctor. She knelt in front of him. “I have to go now, Sweetie. Talk to Jack and Ianto. I have to check on Brian.”

She stood up and walked a couple of feet away before she activated her vortex manipulator.

“Where did she get that?” Jack asked.

“Probably stole it off of a Time Agent,” the Doctor said, as he looked up at them. Jack could see the tears in the Time Lord’s eyes.

“Doctor, what happened to Amy and Rory?” he asked as Ianto took his hand.

“They’re dead,” the Doctor cried. “The Angels got them. I tried to get Amy away, but she wouldn’t leave without Rory. She let it send her back to him.”

“And River is from the timeline they were sent to?”

“No, but that’s a long story,” the Doctor said as he got up. “I shouldn’t have come here. I just, I had to see a familiar face before I went away.”

“Where are you going?” Ianto asked.

“I don’t know,” the Doctor said as he looked at them. “There’s something different about the two of you.”

He got out his Sonic Screwdriver and scanned both of them. “Oh, well, that explains it.”

“Explains what?” Jack said as he looked at the Doctor.

“It seems the last time I was here, the TARDIS took some matters into her own hands,” the Doctor said as he looked at Ianto. “I’m afraid I have good news and bad news. Could see it as more good news than bad.”

“What did the TARDIS do, Doctor?” Ianto asked.

“It made you like Jack. I think the TARDIS saw how much your death devastated him in the alternative timeline, not to mention what it did to him during the Year that Never Was and she wanted to make sure he never had to go through that again.”

“Ianto’s immortal?” Jack asked as the Doctor gave him a small smile. 

“As immortal as you are. Now, as far as that baby you’re carrying is concerned, I can’t make any guarantees. But considering his parents are both immortal, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Wait, did you just say baby?” Jack asked as his and Ianto’s eyes got big. “As in I’m pregnant?”

“Yes, didn’t you know?” the Doctor asked as he frowned. “Oh, you didn’t. Surprise, you’re pregnant.”

“You said he’s pregnant with a baby boy?” Ianto asked.

“Yeah,” the Doctor said as he held up his Sonic Screwdriver. “This tells me a lot of things. The baby is a definitely a boy. And you’re about 6 weeks along.”

The Doctor gave them both a hug. “Take care of each other. Take care of that baby. And stay away from Weeping Angels.”

He started to walk away and Jack called after him. “Where will you go?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “Possibly the 19th Century. I’ve always like it there.”

He gave them a salute as he went into the TARDIS and dematerialized.

Jack took Ianto’s hand and led him back into the Hub. They went straight to the medical bay. Owen and Martha looked up from their work as Jack went over to the body scanner and put his hand on it. A matter of seconds later, the image of his body was projected and they could see the tiny indication of the baby growing in Jack’s womb.

“Bloody hell,” Owen said as he and Martha walked over to them.

“He was right,” Ianto said as he looked at Jack. “You’re pregnant.”

“You okay with this?” Jack asked as he took his hand off of the scanner. 

Ianto just took Jack’s face into his hands and kissed him. “You’re having my baby,” he said as he grinned at Jack. “We’re going to have a son.”

“Um, guys, you want to tell your doctors what’s going on?” Martha asked as they turned to face her and Owen.

“We saw the Doctor just now,” Jack said. Martha’s eyes started to light up. “No, not that one, the next one. Anyway, he said there was something different about us so he scanned both of us with his Sonic Screwdriver. He told us that Ianto is immortal now and I’m going to have a baby boy. Said I’m six weeks gone.”

Owen just shook his head. “Bloody Torchwood. So, I know how you got pregnant, but how did Ianto become immortal and how did the Doctor know the baby is a boy? It’s too early for any of our equipment to show that.”

They explained to Owen and Martha what the Doctor had told them. Owen nodded and said he wanted to run some tests on Ianto. He sent Jack and Martha out but told Jack that he wanted the pregnant man to submit to weekly checkups for the time being and he was barred from field work.

Jack nodded as Martha led him out of the medical bay and up to his office. “What happened to the Doctor?” she asked as they sat down.

“He lost his companions,” Jack said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so sad. He may try to isolate himself for a while. He might even stop traveling.”

“Will we see him again?” 

“I’m sure he will,” Jack said as he put his hand on his stomach. 

“I can’t believe you’re pregnant,” Martha grinned.

“I can’t either,” Jack said as he smiled. “I can’t say that we were trying but I can’t say we weren’t either. I told Ianto it was a possibility but we never took any precautions.”

“Is this the first time you’ve been pregnant?”

“Yeah, it is,” Jack admitted. “At least I think it is. There are two years of my memory that are missing. I know I joked that I was never doing that again once when I commented on the estrogen in the rain but I don’t remember being pregnant before.”

“Do you think the Doctor could help you regain those memories?”

“I don’t know. And I don’t want to ask him. I’m not sure I want to recover those memories anymore.”

The door opened and Ianto came in. “Owen through using you as a pin cushion?” Jack asked.

“Yeah, for now,” Ianto said as he sat down next to Martha. “He said he’s going to compare my blood to yours. Says he noticed something the last time he looked at your blood.”

“I’ll go see if I can help him,” Martha said as she got up.

Ianto waited until she left then he got up and sat on the edge of Jack’s desk. “So, I think I’m going to have to introduce you to my sister now.”

Jack laughed. “Yeah, I guess you are. And we should probably look for a bigger flat. A one bedroom isn’t going to be suitable for a baby.”

“No, it’s not,” Ianto said as he looked Jack in the eye. “Are you okay with me being immortal?”

Jack touched Ianto’s cheek. “Am I okay with you being burdened with the same curse I am, no. Am I glad that I won’t have to bury you? Absolutely. The Doctor was right. I don’t ever want to lose you again.”

Ianto kissed him then said, “Owen said for me to take you home.”

“I think I agree with our dear doctor,” Jack grinned as they got up. “We need to go home right away.”


	5. Chapter 5

They started looking for a new place to live the next week. Jack wasn’t happy about the weekly checkups but he understood that it was necessary to make sure his baby was all right. Ianto spent more time in the field than he had in the past. Jack wasn’t sure he was okay with that either but he again knew it was necessary since he couldn’t be in the field.  
Tosh was surprised when Jack wanted to learn more about the computer systems. He had never seemed interested in that aspect of what they did before. He explained that he was going to be spending a long time in the Hub and he needed to make himself useful. Jack knew Ianto wouldn’t let anyone except maybe Rhys touch the archives. He knew better than to even look at the coffee machine. He also knew that he didn’t have the skills necessary to help Martha and Owen. He did however have some basic computer skills he had acquired since the computer had started becoming an integral part of Torchwood and he could expand on that.

By the time Jack was five months along, and Owen confirmed to his satisfaction that the baby was a boy, he had vastly improved his computer skills. He knew he still wasn’t on par with Tosh but he was able to better assist her with the research and Ianto with cover-ups than he had been before.

When they started investigating a place called the Pharm, Jack had a feeling that this wasn’t going to turn out well. He was told to turn his comm by Owen. He tried to object but Owen told him it was better for him and the baby if he didn’t hear what was going on there. He was just about to call the Doctor and have him come and take care of the Pharm when the Cog door opened and Rhys and Andy cleared a path to the medical bay. 

Jack nearly felt his knees give way when he saw Owen and Martha dragging Ianto’s lifeless body toward the bay. Tosh ran over to him and eased him into a chair. “What happened?” he asked her, his voice catching.

“He took a bullet that was meant for Owen,” she said as she pulled him into her arms. “If it hadn’t been for Ianto, Owen would be dead right now.”

“But he was killed,” Jack cried.

“He’ll be all right,” Tosh said as he got up and she knew he wouldn’t let her keep him from his lover.

Jack came down the stairs of the medical bay and walked straight to where Ianto lay on the autopsy table. “How long has he been out?”

“Not even half an hour yet,” Owen said as Jack looked at him.

“This is why you had me turn off my comm?”

“No, he had you turn off your comm when my cover was broken,” Martha admitted. “He didn’t want you to hear if they killed me.”

“What happened to Copley?” 

“Andy shot him right after he shot Ianto,” Rhys said from the top of the stairs.

Ianto gasped to life before Jack could say anything. “Oh thank God,” Jack said as he grabbed Ianto’s hand. “I was beginning to think the Doctor was wrong.”

Owen motioned for everyone to leave Jack and Ianto alone. They heard Mickey come in from where he had been working on the cleanup and told him Ianto had woken up. Ianto sat up on the table and squeezed Jack’s hand. “I couldn’t let Copley shoot Owen. He would have killed him. Tosh would have never forgiven me if I let that happen.”

“She wouldn’t have blamed you,” Jack argued as he fought back the tears. “Damn it, I shouldn’t be crying. You’re all right. That’s what’s important.”

Ianto held him close. “I understand, Cariad. Neither one of us knew for sure that I would come back until something actually happened. I can’t promise that it won’t happen again.”

“I know,” Jack said as he wiped his eyes. “I know what the risks are. I just wish I could help you so you don’t have to take them.”

“Not until after this little one is born,” Ianto said as he put his hand on Jack’s stomach. Jack put his hand on top of Ianto’s and they felt the baby move. “Right now, let’s go home. Send everyone home. They deserve a rest. Tosh and Owen especially.”

Jack nodded and they went upstairs. Jack told everyone the final cleanup could wait until the morning. Andy and Rhys said they would be in early and take care of everything. Tosh and Owen went straight home and Owen took the opportunity to tell Tosh something he had been holding back ever since they had gotten together. He finally admitted he loved her.

Martha and Mickey had been given permission by Jack to let Tom and Tish know what was going on with their work. He knew that keeping secrets from them would be useless. Everything Tish had been through with the Master proved she could handle what was out there. Tom also proved capable of handling what was out there. Jack and Ianto talked about it and decided that bringing them onto the team simply as support would be a good idea.

Tish actually turned out to be the only person other than Rhys Ianto trusted with the archives. And she was the only other person he trusted with the coffee machine. Jack tried to bribe her into bringing him some regular coffee but she just gave him a look and reminded him that she could call her mother if pressed. If there was one person on this Earth that Jack didn’t want to get on the bad side of it was Francine Jones.

Jack and Rhiannon got along a lot better than Ianto had predicted they would. They both shared a concern for Ianto’s welfare and Rhiannon knew that Jack would do whatever it took to make sure her brother was safe. She knew she hadn’t been able to do that when they were growing up and she was glad there was someone there to take care of him now. She also didn’t mind that Jack was handsome. And she was excited about getting a nephew.

Ianto became reluctant to leave the Hub as Jack grew closer to his due date. He trusted Tom and Tish, he just felt he should be there should anything happen. Jack told him he couldn’t hover and he was needed in the field. So that was why Ianto was out dealing with a rash of Weevil attacks a week before Jack was due.

Jack was sitting at Tosh’s station, monitoring where the team was and trying not to grimace as he drank his decaf coffee. Tom was getting some dinner for the three of them and Tish had just come up from the archives. “Where are they now?” she asked as she looked at the monitors.

“They’re moving towards the bay,” Jack said as he rubbed his stomach. “The last time Mickey checked in he said they had just about finished rounding the Weevils up.”

He was scrolling through the CCTV footage when he stiffened. “Jack?” Tish asked as she looked at him. “What’s wrong?”

“My waters just broke,” he said as he looked up at her.

She keyed her comm line on. “Tom, we need you back here now. Ianto, you too.”

“What is it?” came Ianto’s voice.

“Jack’s in labor,” she said as he doubled over. “I think he probably has been for a while. His waters just broke.”

“See if you can get him over to the medical bay,” Owen ordered. “Tom, get back there quick as you can. Ianto and I are on our way. The rest of you lot take care of these Weevils.”

“Can you walk?” Tish asked.

“I don’t know,” Jack admitted.

“Okay, hang on,” she said as she grabbed the back of Tosh’s chair and pushed it toward the medical bay. “I can’t push you down the stairs. If we can get you down the stairs, I can get Owen’s chair and get you the rest of the way to the exam table.”

Jack just nodded and grabbed the rail as he pulled himself up out of Tosh’s chair. “God I hope Ianto makes it,” he said as he made his way down the stairs. “I need to rip his balls off.”

“You don’t mean that,” Tish said as she tried not to laugh.

“No, not really,” Jack said as Tom came through the door and ran over to them. 

“And you told me your stomach was hurting cause you were hungry,” he said as he helped Jack the rest of the way down the stairs and to the exam table.

“I really was hungry,” Jack protested. “Still am for that matter.”

“Let’s get this baby born first, then you can eat,” Tom said as he pulled Jack’s boots off followed by his trousers and pants.

“I usually like to have a person buy me a drink before they strip me,” Jack said as he winked at Tish.

“Talk to Ianto about that,” Tom said as he looked at Tish. “I know you probably don’t want to, but I’m going to need some help until Owen gets back.”

“What do you need?” she asked.

“Owen’s got a pack of instruments labeled Jack over there. Everything should be ready to go.”

She went over and got the pack of instruments and brought it over to Tom. He put on a pair of gloves and looked at Jack. “You know I have to check.”

Jack just nodded as he tilted his head back. He wasn’t a modest man by any stretch of the imagination but in this situation he wanted to limit access to the birth canal. He was okay with Tom and Owen taking care of the delivery but he told Martha she was prohibited from that chore. She just laughed.

“Jack, I think you’re been in labor most of the day,” Tom said as he looked at his friend. “You’re just about ready to push.”

“Not without Ianto,” Jack gasped. He knew he didn’t have much choice since the contractions were getting to be right on top of each other but he didn’t want to have this baby without his father being there.

Tom had just told him he had to start pushing when Ianto and Owen came running in. Owen ordered Ianto to wash up before he went to his lover. Once Owen and Ianto were both scrubbed up, they joined Tom and Jack. Tish went back upstairs and kept everyone in the loop both in and out of the Hub.

“Thought you weren’t going to make it,” Jack said as he pushed.

“I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Ianto said as he kissed Jack’s forehead.

Jack pushed for about an hour before the baby finally emerged from his body. Owen and Tom made quick work of cleaning the baby boy up and handing him to his father. 

“Looks like you two have a perfectly healthy son,” Owen said as he and Tom left the two new fathers alone.

“Ianto, look what we did,” Jack said as he held the baby.

“You did most of the hard work,” Ianto said as he gazed down at the baby. “I think I know what his name is.”

“What?” Jack said as he looked up at his lover.

“Gerwyn Rory Harkness-Jones.”

“Gerwyn was your grandfather,” Jack said as he looked back at the baby. “I like it. I think the Doctor will too.”

“I knew you said you didn’t want to name him after your father. And if it weren’t for Amy and Rory and the crack in her wall, we might not have him.”

“You’re right. And maybe we’ll name the next one after Dad.”

“Next one?” Ianto asked as he gave Jack a look.

“We’ll talk,” Jack said as Owen came back down.

“How are you feeling, Jack?”

Jack thought about it for a minute. “I feel great. I don’t feel like I’ve given birth at all.”

“Yeah, don’t let the girls here you say that,” Owen laughed. “It’s the middle of the night and Tom and I think it would be a bad idea to take the baby out into the night air. We’ve set up something in the ready room if you are ready.”

“We could both use some rest before he starts keeping us up at night,” Ianto said as he took Gerwyn so Jack could get up and put his clothes back on.

Owen led them to the ready room they had set up months ago. It had been decided among the team that they needed a room that they could use to sleep in when they wound out spending the night at the Hub. There were beds and partitions throughout the room and Jack and Ianto had set up a portable cot in their section of the room.

The idea was to turn other unused room in the Hub into ready rooms for the other team members, they just hadn’t had a chance to do it yet. Everyone was waiting for them when they came in. Jack and Ianto looked at their friends. Jack smiled as he took his son and presented him to the team. “Meet Gerwyn Rory Harkness-Jones.”

Everyone cooed over the baby before Owen shooed them away and gave Jack and Ianto some privacy. They got Gerwyn into a nappy and outfit then gave him a bottle. Once he had his fill, he was settled into his cot and his parents watched as he drifted off to sleep. “Seems fitting that he decided to be born in the middle of a Weevil hunt,” Jack said as he grinned at Ianto.

“We only call it Weevil hunting when we go off by ourselves,” Ianto said as he returned the grin. “But I get your point.”

“Let’s get some sleep,” Ianto said as they changed into their pajamas and settled down.

The next morning the distinctive sound of the TARDIS came from the CCTV. Tosh went up to let the Doctor in. He was led straight to the ready room where Jack and Ianto were waiting with their son. “Oh, there he is,” the Doctor said as he went over to them. “Oh yes, he’s perfect.”

“Doctor, meet Gerwyn Rory Harkness-Jones,” Jack said as the Doctor looked at him.

He smiled at them and took the baby from Jack. “I know, you like being held by your parents. What’s that? Which one is Mummy? Well, Jack would kill me if I called him Mummy so we’ll call him Daddy. And since Ianto’s Welsh, we’ll call him Taddy. Is that all right with you? Thought you’d like it. I’ll tell them.”

He handed Ianto Gerwyn and smiled. “He says he likes his name and he loves his daddy and taddy.”

“You weren’t having a conversation with him,” Jack asked as he gave the Doctor a look. “Were you?”

“I speak Baby,” the Doctor grinned. Then he turned serious. “It’s too soon to tell if he inherited your immortality or not. I would imagine if he did it won’t manifest until he has grown up. I know both of you will worry about that, but put it out of your minds and enjoy this time with him. Children grow up too fast. And sometimes they’re born fully grown. Anyway, I have to go. Clara’s waiting for me to take her to Woodstock. We’ll be back soon.”

They followed the Doctor out to the Tardis and said goodbye before Martha and Tom sent them home. They were under strict instructions not to show up at the Hub for any reasons for the next month. The team wanted the new parents to get used to having Gerwyn in their house before they had to worry about Torchwood. 

In the end, the team wound up at the house more often than not. Gerwyn was going to wind up being one of the most spoiled babies in Wales, if not the United Kingdom. And Jack and Ianto loved every minute of it. And none of it would have happened if the Doctor hadn’t closed the last crack.

**Author's Note:**

> I hate sacrificing John Hart. I love his character. However it was necessary. Without John, Gray does not come back. And of course any Torchwood story I write is going to involve the death of one Gwen Cooper. There are many reasons I can't stand that character. Also goes without saying any Torchwood story I write will not be including anything after series 2. 
> 
> Also I adore the 10th Doctor, I'm not wanting to bash him, but this called for it, just a touch.


End file.
